In an interview Saturday night, Yesha Council head Danny Dayan said he was very concerned over the appointment of George Mitchell as President Barack Obama's Middle East envoy. During his previous stint as an American diplomat in the region, Mitchell was opposed to allowing Jewish towns in Judea and Samaria to expand, not even agreeing to the concept of “natural growth,” in which the populations of towns increase due to the expansion of families.

“Mitchell's appointment is of great concern,” Dayan told Yediot Achronot. “We're afraid we're going to have to get permission from Obama to have children,” he said.